JP2013120726A - Electric connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electric connector which can ensure high mass productivity and high reliability by curing a photo-curable resin forming a sealing part in a short time, thereby preventing the sealing part from peeling.SOLUTION: An electric connector 1 comprises: a box-like housing 10 having an opening; a conductive terminal 20 arranged on the bottom face 14 of the housing 10 while projecting the tip 21 into the housing 10; and a sealing part 30 sealing the periphery of the conductive terminal 20 by filling the bottom face 14 with a photo-curable resin. On the bottom face 14 of the housing 10, an inclined surface 16 is provided as a shallow bottom part for thinning the sealing part 30 along the periphery. Since the periphery of the sealing part 30 becomes shallow, the curing light for curing the photo-curable resin reaches the bottom easily, and thereby the photo-curable resin can be cured in a short time.

Description

  The present invention relates to an electrical connector in which a periphery of a conductive terminal that is protruded through a bottom surface of a housing is sealed with a photocurable resin.

  For electrical connectors used outdoors or in containers filled with liquid, the conductive terminal insertion hole with the conductive terminal inserted is sealed with resin so that liquid and dust do not enter the electrical connector. By stopping, there is no gap. About such an electrical connector, what was described in patent documents 1-3 is known, for example.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a connection terminal in which a portion of a housing that houses a connection terminal and a cover that is attached to the housing so as to be openable and closable are filled with a gel-like ultraviolet curable resin and electrical wiring is firmly connected. A connector is described in which the gap between the fixed portion and the housing and the cover is liquid-tight.

  In Patent Document 2, there is a sealant layer formed of an ultraviolet curable resin, a room temperature curable resin, a heat curable resin, or the like in order to ensure hermeticity in a plurality of contact insertion holes formed in a recess of a housing. There is described a connector provided with a height determination unit for determining an appropriate height for filling a sealant on the bottom surface of a recess.

  In Patent Document 3, a photoelectric conversion component that converts between an optical signal and an optical signal and an optical component that transmits an optical signal are disposed on the mating side of a plug housing that mates with a receptacle connector. A recess and a second recess in which an electrical component that processes only an electrical signal is formed, and after sealing the first recess with an ultraviolet curable resin, the second recess is sealed with a thermosetting resin A photoelectric composite connector is described.

Here, a conventional electrical connector will be described with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the conventional electrical connector 100 is arranged with a box-shaped housing 110 having an opening, and a bottom surface portion 111 of the housing 110 with a leading end 121 protruding into the housing 110. And a conductive terminal 120. The bottom surface portion 111 of the housing 110 is provided with a sealing portion 130 that is filled with a photocurable resin and seals the periphery of the conductive terminal 120. By sealing the gap between the conductive terminal 120 and the conductive terminal insertion hole 112 by the sealing portion 130, sealing performance is ensured. In the sealing portion 130, the photocurable resin is cured by light irradiation from above while the electrical connector 100 in which the concave portion 113 of the housing 110 is filled with the photocurable resin by the dispenser is placed on the conveyor and conveyed by the conveyor. Is formed.

JP-A-10-284170 JP 2009-181798 A JP 2010-267512 A

  However, in the conventional electrical connector 100 shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, peeling may occur at the interface between the peripheral portion of the bottom surface portion 111 of the housing 110 and the sealing portion 130.

  This is because the peripheral edge 114 of the bottom surface portion 111 of the housing 110 is formed by a flat bottom surface 115 and an inner peripheral surface 116 perpendicular to the bottom surface 115, so Is constant. Since the depth is constant, the photo-curing resin is cured by the integrated light amount of the curing light irradiated by the curing light lamp, so that the peripheral portion 131 and the central portion 132 of the sealing portion 130 emit light from above. The time required for curing is the same.

  If the irradiation time of the curing light necessary for curing is not sufficient, the necessary curing cannot be obtained, and the adhesion between the sealing portion 130 and the housing 110 is lowered. In this case, since the central portion 132 of the sealing portion 130 is in close contact with the bottom surface 115, the peripheral portion 131 of the sealing portion 130 is in close contact with the peripheral side surface having a small area even if the adhesion strength can be secured. Due to the sudden vibration or temperature change, peeling occurs from the interface between the peripheral portion of the bottom surface portion 111 of the housing 110 and the sealing portion 130, and this peeling proceeds to the periphery of the conductive terminal 120, so that liquid enters. There is a fear. Although sufficient time should be given for hardening of photocurable resin, it is necessary to reduce the conveyance speed of a conveyor and mass-productivity falls.

  That is, if the photocurable resin constituting the sealing portion 130 can be cured in a short time, high mass productivity can be achieved, and if peeling of the sealing portion can be prevented, high reliability can be achieved.

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is to achieve high mass productivity and high reliability by preventing the peeling of the sealing part by curing the photocurable resin forming the sealing part in a short time. An object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector that can be used.

  The electrical connector according to the present invention includes a box-shaped housing having an opening, a conductive terminal disposed at a bottom surface of the housing with a tip projecting into the housing, and a photocurable resin on the bottom. And a sealing portion in which the periphery of the conductive terminal is sealed by filling a resin, and a shallow bottom portion for reducing the thickness of the sealing portion is provided along a peripheral edge of the bottom surface portion. .

  According to the electrical connector of the present invention, since the shallow bottom portion for reducing the thickness of the sealing portion is provided along the peripheral edge of the bottom surface portion of the housing, the curing light for curing the photocurable resin is firmly attached to the bottom surface. It is possible to reach the periphery of the part. Therefore, even if the irradiation time of the curing light is short, peeling of the sealing portion can be prevented.

  When the shallow bottom portion is an inclined surface, the depth of the sealing portion can be reduced by the inclined surface from the bottom surface of the housing toward the inner peripheral surface of the housing, so that the curing light can securely reach the periphery of the bottom surface portion. be able to.

  If the inclined surface is a flat surface, it can be gradually made shallower. Further, when at least a part of the inclined surface is a convex curved surface, it is possible to increase a shallowing ratio and increase a contact area as compared with a flat surface, thereby improving adhesion. When at least a part of the inclined surface is a continuous uneven surface, the contact area can be further increased, so that the adhesion can be further improved. This uneven surface can be stepped.

  An inner peripheral surface of the housing is provided between the inclined surface and an inner peripheral surface of the housing formed along the peripheral edge of the bottom surface portion. Even if the upper part of the upper part is inclined inward, the distance from the inner peripheral surface to the sealing part can be ensured by the shelf, so that the influence of the shadow of the curing light by the upper part of the inner peripheral surface can be suppressed.

  According to the electrical connector of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the sealing portion from peeling even if the irradiation time of the curing light is a short time by allowing the curing light to firmly reach the periphery of the bottom surface portion. High mass productivity and high reliability can be achieved.

It is a top view which shows the electrical connector which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is an AA line sectional view of the electric connector shown in FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the hardening light irradiation apparatus which hardens the sealing part of the electrical connector shown in FIG. It is a table | surface which shows the relationship between the reaction rate of photocurable resin according to integrated light quantity, and the depth of photocurable resin. It is a top view which shows the 1st modification of the electrical connector which concerns on embodiment of this invention. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the electrical connector shown in FIG. It is a top view which shows the 2nd modification of the electrical connector which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is CC sectional view taken on the line of the electrical connector shown in FIG. It is an enlarged view of the inclined surface of the modification of the electrical connector shown in FIG. It is a top view which shows the conventional electrical connector. It is the DD sectional view taken on the line of the conventional electrical connector shown in FIG.

(Embodiment)
An electrical connector according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In this specification, the opening direction of the housing is referred to as “up” and the bottom direction is referred to as “down”.
An electrical connector 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is used, for example, in an electrical circuit installed in an automobile, and includes a housing 10, a conductive terminal 20, and a sealing portion 30.

  The housing 10 is formed in a box shape having a rectangular opening 11. A conductive terminal insertion hole 13 for inserting the conductive terminal 20 is provided on the bottom surface 12 of the housing 10. The conductive terminal insertion hole 13 is formed in an elongated rectangular shape in accordance with the cross-sectional shape of the conductive terminal 20 in the width direction. The bottom surface portion 14 of the housing 10 is provided with an inclined surface 16 that functions as a shallow bottom portion along the peripheral edge 15. In the present embodiment, the inclined surface 16 is a flat surface in which the depth of the concave portion 18 gradually decreases from the bottom surface 12 toward the inner peripheral surface 17. Between the inclined surface 16 and the inner peripheral surface 17, a shelf portion 19 that is an annular horizontal portion that extends outward from the upper end of the inclined surface 16 is provided.

  The conductive terminal 20 is a terminal formed of a rod-shaped metal thin plate. The conductive terminal 20 is inserted into the conductive terminal insertion hole 13, and is arranged in a state where the distal end portion 21 protrudes into the recess 18 of the housing 10.

  The sealing part 30 seals the periphery of the conductive terminal 20 by filling the bottom part 14 of the recess 18 with a photocurable resin. In the sealing portion 30 of the present embodiment, the thickness (depth) from the bottom surface 12 to the upper end of the inclined surface 16 is formed, but the periphery of the conductive terminal 20 can be sealed, and the sealing portion 30 and the housing 10 are sealed. If the adhesiveness with the recess 18 can be ensured, the filling amount of the photocurable resin may be smaller than the height of the inclined surface 16. Moreover, the thickness of the sealing part 30 of this Embodiment is about 3 mm in the center part.

  As the photocurable resin, any resin that can be cured by invisible light such as ultraviolet light or infrared light, or cured light such as visible light can be employed. The vertical cross-sectional shape of the sealing portion 30 is formed in a trapezoidal shape because the inclined surface 16 is provided along the peripheral edge of the bottom surface portion 14 of the housing 10.

Curing of the sealing portion 30 of the electrical connector 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention configured as described above will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.
The sealing portion 30 is filled with a photocurable resin in the housing 10 by a dispenser (not shown), and is cured by the curing light irradiation device 50 shown in FIG.
The curing light irradiation device 50 includes a curing light irradiation unit 51 that emits curing light, a height adjustment unit (not shown) that adjusts the height of the curing light irradiation unit 51, and a conveyor 52 that conveys the electrical connector 1. Yes.
The curing light irradiation unit 51 includes a curing light lamp 511 that emits curing light, a reflector 512 that reflects the curing light from the curing light lamp 511 and directs it toward the electrical connector 1, and a cut filter 513 that blocks light other than the curing light. It has. As the curing light lamp 511, a metal halide lamp or a high-pressure mercury lamp can be used.

  The electrical connector 1 that moves along the flow direction of the conveyor 52 from one side of the conveyor 52 to the other side is irradiated with curing light from the curing light lamp 511 irradiated through the cut filter 513. With this curing light, the photocurable resin filled in the recess 18 of the housing 10 is cured.

Here, the relationship between the reaction rate of the photocurable resin and the depth of the photocurable resin according to the integrated light amount will be described with reference to FIG.
The table shown in FIG. 4 shows the reaction when three types of photocurable resins having a depth of 1 mm, 2 mm, and 3 mm are cured by irradiation with light from a high-pressure mercury lamp, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy ( FT-IR) and measured by an infrared spectrometer.
As shown in FIG. 4, as a result of the measurement, for example, if the depth is 1 mm, a reaction rate of 100% is obtained when the integrated light quantity is 15,000 mJ / cm ² , but if the depth is 2 mm, the reaction rate is 95%. At 3 mm, the reaction rate was 90%.
Further, when the integrated light quantity is 10,000 mJ / cm ² , the depth is 1 mm and the reaction rate is 92%, whereas the reaction rate is 82% at a depth of 2 mm and the reaction rate is 70 at a depth of 3 mm. %Met.
Furthermore, when the integrated light quantity is 5,000 mJ / cm ² , the depth is 1 mm and the reaction rate is 62%, whereas the reaction rate is 50% at a depth of 2 mm and the reaction rate is 40 at a depth of 3 mm. %Met.
Thus, it can be seen that the shorter the depth of the photo-curing resin, the more the same integrated light amount, tends to cure faster.

  In the electrical connector 1 shown in FIG. 3, an inclined surface 16 formed on a flat surface that gradually decreases the depth of the recess 18 is formed, so that the hardening light becomes closer to the periphery of the bottom surface portion 14 of the housing 10. The reach is shortened. Accordingly, the closer to the periphery of the bottom surface portion 14 of the housing 10, the more firmly the photocurable resin that forms the sealing portion 30 can react, so that the adhesion between the sealing portion 30 and the periphery of the bottom surface portion 14 is improved. Can be increased.

  Thus, since the periphery of the sealing part 30 can be made to react firmly, peeling of the sealing part 30 can be prevented even if irradiation time of hardening light is a short time. Therefore, since the electrical connector 1 can prevent the sealing portion 30 from being peeled even when the irradiation time of the curing light is short, high mass productivity and high reliability can be achieved.

  Moreover, the upper part of the inner peripheral surface 17 may incline inward by the tolerance of the housing 10 or the shrinkage after the housing 10 is molded. However, the shelf 19 that extends outward from the upper end of the inclined surface 16 is provided between the inclined surface 16 and the inner peripheral surface 17 of the housing 10 formed along the peripheral edge 15 of the bottom surface portion 14. Even if the upper part of the inner peripheral surface 17 is inclined inward, the shelf 19 can secure the distance from the inner peripheral surface 17 to the sealing portion 30, so that the inner periphery when the curing light is irradiated from the curing light lamp 511. The influence of the shadow of the curing light by the upper part of the surface 17 can be suppressed.

(First modification)
A first modification of the electrical connector according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, the same components as those in FIGS. 1 and 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.
In the electrical connector 1x according to the first modification shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the inclined surface 16x is formed in a convex curved surface. The convex portion bulging inward by the convex curved surface is an amount of protrusion that cannot be shadowed by the curing light irradiated from above below the convex portion. The sealing portion 30x that can be formed by forming the inclined surface 16x as a convex curved surface can be formed of the same photocurable resin as the sealing portion 30 shown in FIGS. The sealing portion 30x is formed with a thickness (depth) from the bottom surface 12 to the upper end of the inclined surface 16x.

Thus, even if the inclined surface 16x is a convex curved surface, the depth of the concave portion 18 can be reduced at the periphery of the bottom surface portion 14 of the housing 10x, so that the photocurable resin can be made to react firmly at the periphery of the bottom surface portion 14. Can do.
In addition, since the inclined surface 16x can be made shallower and the contact area with the sealing portion 30x can be further increased as compared with the inclined surface 16 of the flat surface shown in FIG. Furthermore, adhesion can be improved. Moreover, since the capacity | capacitance for setting it as the sealing part 30x reduces by the part which bulged inside by making the inclined surface 16x into a convex curve, the filling amount of photocurable resin can be reduced.

  In addition, in the inclined surface 16x shown in FIG. 6, the whole inclined surface 16x is formed in one convex curved surface, However, A part of inclined surface can be made into a convex curved surface combining with a flat surface.

(Second modification)
A second modification of the electrical connector according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8, the same components as those in FIGS. 1 and 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.
In the electrical connector 1y according to the second modification shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the entire inclined surface 16y is formed in a step shape. The sealing portion 30y that can be formed by making the inclined surface 16y have a stepped shape can be formed of the same photocurable resin as the sealing portion 30 shown in FIGS. The sealing portion 30y is formed with a thickness (depth) from the bottom surface 12 to the upper end of the inclined surface 16y.
In the present embodiment, three steps are used. However, even if the number of steps is one, two, or four or more, the housing 10y can be formed according to the form for molding.

Even if the inclined surface 16y has a stepped shape, the depth of the concave portion 18 can be reduced at the periphery of the bottom surface portion 14, so that the photocurable resin can be reacted firmly at the periphery of the bottom surface portion 14.
Further, the inclined surface 16y can further increase the contact area with the sealing portion 30y as compared with the inclined surface 16 by the flat surface shown in FIG. 2 and the inclined surface 16x shown in FIG. Can be increased.

(Other modifications of the second modification)
Another modification of the second modification will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 9, only the inclined surface 16z is shown in an enlarged manner, but the other parts are the same as in FIG.
The inclined surface 16z shown in FIG. 9 is formed as an obtuse angle between the tread surface portion 16za which is a horizontal portion and the kick portion 16zb which is a standing wall portion. Is formed. In the inclined surface 16y shown in FIG. 8, the tread surface portion is formed by a horizontal surface and the upper part is formed as a vertical surface, but in the inclined surface 16z shown in FIG. 9, the upper part 16zb is formed in a downward inclined surface that goes downward. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a shadow due to the curing light irradiated to the tread surface portion 16za while securing the adhesion between the sealing portion 30z and the bottom surface portion 14.

In the electrical connector shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the entire inclined surfaces 16y and 16z are formed in a step shape, but a portion of the inclined surface can be formed in a step shape in combination with a flat surface.
In addition, the inclined surfaces 16y and 16z have a continuous uneven surface by providing a step for each predetermined height. However, a convex portion can be provided on the entire inclined surface to form an uneven surface.

  As an in-vehicle electrical connector used in an electronic circuit mounted on an electronic / electric device or an automobile, it can be widely used in fields such as the electrical / electronic equipment industry and the automobile industry.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1,1x, 1y Electrical connector 10,10x, 10y Housing 11 Opening part 12 Bottom surface 13 Insertion hole for conductive terminals 14 Bottom surface part 15 Periphery 16, 16x, 16y, 16z Inclined surface 16za Tread surface part 16zb Kickup part 17 Inner peripheral surface 18 Recessed part DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 19 Shelf part 20 Conductive terminal 21 Tip part 30,30x, 30y Sealing part 50 Curing light irradiation apparatus 51 Curing light irradiation part 511 Curing light lamp 512 Reflector 513 Cut filter 52 Conveyor

The electrical connector according to the present invention includes a box-shaped housing having an opening, a conductive terminal disposed at a bottom surface of the housing with a tip projecting into the housing, and a photocurable resin on the bottom. A sealing portion filled with resin and sealing the periphery of the conductive terminal, and an inclined surface is provided as a shallow bottom portion for reducing the thickness of the sealing portion along the periphery of the bottom surface portion. Features.

Due to the inclined surface of the shallow bottom portion, it is possible to reduce the depth of the sealing portion by the inclined surface toward the inner peripheral surface of the housing from the bottom surface of the housing, the firm bottom part curing light periphery Can be reached.

Claims (6)

A box-shaped housing having an opening;
A conductive terminal disposed on the bottom surface of the housing with a tip projecting into the housing;
A sealing portion that fills the bottom portion with a photocurable resin and seals the periphery of the conductive terminal;
An electrical connector comprising a shallow bottom portion for reducing the thickness of the sealing portion along a peripheral edge of the bottom surface portion.   The electrical connector according to claim 1, wherein the shallow bottom portion is an inclined surface.   The electrical connector according to claim 2, wherein the inclined surface is a flat surface.   The electrical connector according to claim 2, wherein at least a part of the inclined surface is a convex curved surface.   The electrical connector according to claim 2, wherein at least a part of the inclined surface has a step shape.   The shelf part which goes outside from the upper end of the said inclined surface is provided between the said inclined surface and the internal peripheral surface of the said housing formed along the periphery of the said bottom face part. An electrical connector according to any of the above sections.

Images